How Cyber Incidents Disrupt Financial Payment Systems

Financial payment systems depend on interconnected banks, payment service providers, clearing institutions, settlement infrastructures, and technology vendors. Cyber incidents can interrupt transaction processing, compromise payment instructions, or disrupt shared services without necessarily causing settlement failures. This research examines how cyber threats affect financial infrastructure, distinguishing operational outages, transaction integrity failures, and disruptions to financial obligations.

Drawing on documented incidents involving Bangladesh Bank and ION Group, alongside evidence from the European Central Bank, the Financial Stability Oversight Council, and CPMI-IOSCO, the study evaluates operational dependencies, incident propagation, and financial system resilience. It emphasizes the importance of distinguishing confirmed outcomes from hypothetical scenarios and established recovery objectives from demonstrated recovery performance.